I Hope the Fame

Doesn't go to his head. Our boy showed up on another blog today too....but maybe that giant tree will help to keep him humble.

Boy and Border Collie

Amazing Mornings

I'll take them......These warm February days. 


Sunrise today was a tangible movement of brilliant, glorious light over sky and land, lighting up the jet trails that just moments before were grey smudges in the sky. I kind of wished we had waited to do the GBBC until this morning. Friday when we did do it, although it was pretty enough out, there was a nasty, biting, cold wind and we didn't see much until dusk. This morning was still, calm, gorgeous, and birds were everywhere. 

 Sun just starting to light up the sky

Geese were thumping by, breasts spotlit by the sun. Little brown something-or-others were jingling and tinkling in the brush, but the sun was so blinding I couldn't tell what they were. Some kind of sparrow.....


Dad is home and doing quite well, impatient to get back to doing all the things he did before, which I take as a good sign. Thanks again for all your thoughts and prayers!

Just Another Drop of Water

Sunday Stills.....Textures

The textures of winter seem fitting for this February week, so here are a few. The upper ones were taken at a quarry up near Canajoharie, the lower ones in a puddle in the yard.


For more Sunday Stills......

Interesting Post

Over on Buckin' Junction, Liz's blog. She saw a three legged deer the other day and got a photo of its companion patiently waiting for it.

GBBC

Spending a bit of time today attempting to count birds for the Great Backyard Bird Count. After a week where we have seen bald eagles, robins and all manner of other interesting critters there is simply nothing around. Big excitement was one tufted titmouse and a red-tailed hawk. Wow.


And brrrr. Do you suppose the cold wind is keeping them away? I'll betcha.

My Hero

The boss came laughing downstairs this morning and told me about a dream he had.


The after effects of the flood are still all around us....and he was dreaming of it....


Down in town, the waters washed up a baby seal that was swimming valiantly down Main Street, followed by a ferocious alligator that wanted to eat it.


The boss was the only man around and all the older women on the flooded street hollered at him to save it from the alligator.


So into the flood he waded, grabbed it and tossed it in the pickup truck, only to be accosted by a conservation officer who arrested him for picking up seals without a permit.


Whilst this was occurring the gator came upon the officer and accosted him in turn.


The older women screamed again, "Kill the alligator, kill the alligator," and handed the boss an iron pipe.


He proceeded to follow their instruction, but the officer gave him a ticket anyhow, and added one for killing gators out of season.


Later, in court before a kindly justice who used to live down the street from us, the ladies all testified in the boss's behalf.


The judge said, "Not guilty," and threw it out of court.


I wonder what happened to the baby seal........

Another failed photo from my Sunday Stills pursuit

For some real fun, go here and check out these incredible photos of dogs fetching toys...under water (although there are no seals, old ladies, or floods). Trust me, you had no idea what fearsome wee beasties we harbor in our houses. (Scarier than that tropical Fultonville alligator I can tell you!)


Update...here are some more underwater dogs.

Thursday

There is word of snow, anything from a major storm to something going on way south of NYC. Not gonna worry about it. 


Bookkeeping seems to be done for the week, writing is pretty much done for the week. We have a logger fella working in our woods in hopes of enough income to pay the taxes. Cows are shedding like it's their job. I groomed on Lemmie for about two minutes yesterday and got enough hair to cover the floor. They go outdoors every day, but evidently she doesn't see fit to groom herself.
Boy is still laid off and home. Liz is off to the far, far north today on her job. The kids have all been doing a lot of things to make life better around here....a lot...I won't go into detail, but many worries are off my shoulders because of the three of them. Liz even took my heavy outdoor work shirt home and washed and dried it last night just to be nice. I don't know what we would do without them.

 Above, geese on the river

Below, a curtain of ice up in Canjo, a teaser for this week's 

Sunday Stills

I generally like Thursdays, as I usually am done with the books and writing and can actually be a farmer for the day. Dunno how this one is going to go, but I guess I will head out to find out. Take care

Just Ducky

Trip west to get some needed farm supplies yesterday. Discovered that yet again a medicine we rely on regularly is being discontinued. It is so hard to manage around that scenario.

But aren't these common mergansers we saw fishing the Mohawk just ducky? It was fun to watch them hunt an area then just let the current sweep them downstream to go fishing somewhere else...so effortless.

Ocean-View Dispersing the Herd

I was shocked to read that Ocean-View Holsteins in Windsor, California will be selling their over 600 cows on May 2. The farm is a true icon of Holstein cattle, having bred such famous bulls as Ocean-View Sexation, Zenith, Zander and many others.


Liz was lucky enough to visit the farm and meet the owners during a college field study to California to learn about farming there. She loved seeing Zandra and other well-knows cows.

Mandy, an Ocean-View Zenith daughter and two-time junior champion at Altamont fair, 

being milked in the fair parlor.

Here at Northview we have many daughters of bulls from that farm, including Liz's retired show cow, Mandy (Ocean-View Zenith), and Becky's Lemonade (Ocean View Extra Special), Camry, same sire as Lemmie, and several others.


I guess there comes a time for all things to end, but we will miss Ocean-View and their beautiful cows and high-transmitting bulls.

Happy Valentine's Day

OMG, there's a construction worker playing xbox in my dining room...what to do, what to do....

at least with all that protective coloring you won't trip over him

Just another day for us and I am fine with that. We have our quarrels and troubles like all families do, but my family is very good to me every day...don't need a holiday to make a big deal about it.

Cold Again

Not the big time cold that you see on the Northern Plains or up in the Land of the Midnight Sun, but a darn sight colder than is comfortable. We have had a remarkably easy winter, with plenty of warmer than normal, sunny days, but I am still ready for it to end. 


The nice days are such a teaser, reminding us of planting and growing things and playing in the garden pond...

Lots of interesting birds and wildlife around now, including a deer that popped right over the fence out of the barnyard when Alan came over the other day.


We saw a bald eagle right over the corner of the barnyard when we were feeding the other night. Looked up and there he was, low, and right over our heads. 


A sharp shinned hawk almost hit me in the head this morning. I was watching where I was walking and didn't even see him, but Liz said that he skimmed right over me. He landed in a nearby tree and she ran for her camera, but he flew just as she got close.


Saw about fifty robins flying west earlier today, along with a bunch of small, very musical birds, whose call I have never heard before and couldn't identify. Very pretty though.


Also saw what looked like an owl flying between the barns this morning at daybreak. I hope so! Having discovered what the mystery animal is that is coming on the kitchen porch and eating the cat food...a skunk...I am hoping that it is a great horned owl and stays for dinner....

Sunday Stills....From the Heart

It took me a while...until Sunday morning in fact, to think of what I should photograph for this challenge. There is so much that is dear to my heart....my dear family, from kids to brothers, mom and dad, and all those cousins, aunts and uncles to beloved folk who should have been family even if they aren't related by blood. I am very, very blessed by the people in my life, including all you wonderful folks that I have only met here over the past few years....

Then this morning I woke up thinking about this little valentine, done on canvas board, that I painted for the boss for Valentines Day back in 1985, before kids, before so much. 

It's just a little 3"X5" thing, and lives in the desk drawer in the office, but it sure came from the heart.

For more Sunday Stills......

Bird Snob

I'm not too bad a one I guess.


I don't care for the way imported starlings nest in any opening they find in a building and make a big mess, but I can tolerate them.


 Not too crazy about rock pigeons (, which are really just plain old pigeons, the ones that you see in the park and also nest in barns) but they are beautiful fliers when they fling themselves across the sky just bursting with joy...and they can be kind of pretty tootling around on the ground too.


However, I hate, hate, HATE, English sparrows, or house sparrows if you prefer to be more PC about it. Personally I call them Sassenachs.


The drab little brown interlopers are very different from native birds though....and sneaky old bird snobs can use that to advantage. 


For example, they know I don't like them and they don't linger at the feeder when I go outside. Even the timid little titmice don't fly far, but the Sassenachs are much more wary. If I tap on the window when there is a huge assorted flock at the feeder, only they fly.


However this year a band of them has been marauding the feeders like nasty highwaymen stealing from the chickadee gentry. (Stand and deliver that sunflower seed). 


Being a busy little being I didn't deal with this situation until yesterday. It was sunny and pleasant so I hung the line full of clean laundry. Darned sparrows kept perching in the lilac bushes and then flying straight down that same clothesline to raid the feeder.


You know where that kind of thing leads.


I puzzled for a bit about how to stop them, since I am not fond of doing the laundry twice. Aha! An idea!


I keep a plastic great horned owl swinging in the breeze in the back porch door to keep the little $%%##@ from nesting on the porch.


I took it down and lugged it outside with a bit of old shoe lace and approached the lilac bush where they were perching smugly, waiting for me to go back inside so they could befoul my laundry.


Then they saw the owl. You never saw (or heard) such a commotion. They fled to the top of the tallest cedar tree where they set up an outrageous racket of alarm.


And once I had it swinging merrily in the lilacs, tethered at the top by the shoelace, they left and haven't come back.


I know they will become habituated to the owl and I will either have to move it or think of something else. But for now, revenge is sweet.


And best of all, a steady string of little native birds has continued to use the feeder all day. One bold chickadee even went over to the lilac bushes and sat two feet from the owl, scolding with all its might. Every so often he would glance over at me where I was hanging out more clothes as if to assure me that he had the threat in hand and I was safe from the nasty predator.


***Update, by yesterday evening some of them had figured out how to fly around the house the other way to get to the feeder, so my respite was short if sweet. At least they weren't using my laundry as a flight path.

Heifer Wrasslin'

**Alan took this last summer with his phone and I stumbled upon it yesterday while cleaning out my inbox. I believe it is the Kingpin daughter, Bayliner, down below the barn yard gate, having escaped in order to eat box elder trees. I don't know what it is with that family, but they all will do whatever it takes to get to the darned things and eat them....and personally they could eat every single one on the farm right down to the roots and I wouldn't get mad.

We had three springing heifers, Rosie, my milking shorthorn show heifer, and one open heifer to bring into the cow barn yesterday. (Well actually we had several open ones, but they didn't cooperate.) 


At first they didn't even want to come down off the hill at all. They didn't want to be driven. They didn't want to come when called. They wouldn't even come down when they heard the skid steer which brings their food to them.


After waiting for a while (in the bright, crisp sunshine, not too much of a punishment) I went and got a bucket of grain. 


That got their attention.


We kind of wanted to bring all of them down and put those that are not springing up to calve in a pen in the back of the barn where can keep a better eye on them. However, Shamrock, the Jersey, Rio, a milking shorthorn, Cevin and one other Holstein wanted nothing to do with us so they are still out.


Getting the others down to the barn was only part of the equation. Getting them first into the barn was one project, then getting them into stalls or the pen, depending on how close up they are to calve was another.


It was good to have Al home. He caught some with a halter and just pulled them in and put them where we wanted them, and tolled the others with that trusty grain bucket. Liz got back from work and helped too, so although it took quite a while it went pretty well.


 Nothing like young folks to make a job go a lot easier.


Now we will have to watch them close to make sure they can handle their new locations safely. Cows can be pretty godawful dumb sometimes. I'm glad they are in though, because we need to watch the close ups real closely.

Same Old, Same Old

It is kinda hard to find anything interesting to write about these days. We certainly keep busy...yesterday the boss fixed stalls to bring some heifers into the cow barn. We moved calves, cleaned as always, dragged in hay off round bales and fed it out. Bought another load of round bales (ouch), and prayed for green grass and soon.


Alan has some time home from his job...as the newest guy on the roster he has to wait his turn for work. He is handy to have around and helped the boss replace a stubborn stall divider the beef steer wrecked and rebuilt Mandy and Blitz's tie rail. Since Blitz had worked the rail loose enough that she could step right up into the manger and steal feed from Broadway and Dalkeith across the barn, it was a much needed repair.


These are all things that are engaging enough when you are doing them, but they don't exactly make for thrilling reading later....it's all right by me though. I would rather soldier along doing the boring jobs day after day than run around coping with crisis after crisis, which is a pretty normal situation on a farm, especially when there are animals involved.

Leftover for Wordless Wednesday

From Sunday Stills about liquids.

Scho-Mo Confluence

A necklace of gulls hunts where the waters merge

 A mighty tree the flood washed up at the boat launch

 Mappy for size reference
You can see part of the aqueduct behind him

The Auriesville Shrine from the boat launch

The innocent corn fields looked much the same...

you would never know that they had been inundated with feet of swirling water. When we were little the then owners let my dad and his friends and us kids walk these river flats after the rain, searching for chips of flint, arrow heads, pot shards and other evidence of those who lived here before us.

On the way home from the hospital Sunday my brother and sis-in-law were kind enough to stop at the boat launch where the Schoharie "creek" (a word used loosely for a sometimes-raging monster river) and the Mohawk River (which did some raging of its own last year.)


All the way home, things had looked the same and yet different from the last time I had been this way....before the flood...houses still sat where they always had been, but now they were wrapped in Tyvek, surrounded by dumpsters full of sheet rock and sofas, or sported condemned stickers and waited for their fate. 


It was a little like moving away, growing old, and finding your town somehow different when you came home to visit....you knew where the streets were, but life had gone on without you. Kind of misty and confusing.


Except that it goes on for miles and miles all over the state and a lot of places are much worse than here.


Much the same at the boat launch...the hard things of concrete and stone were still where they used to be but water channels had changed, roads had washed out and been replaced with lesser roads, debris was piled everywhere in windrows and mini-mountains. 


I was really pleased to see that much of the aqueduct still stands...I thought it might have all fallen. Imagine the kind of construction that has kept that much of it upright since 1841.


The place was thronged with people, much busier than it is in the summer when the state holds its hand out for money every time you drive down the access road. People hunted lures, played with eager doggies, or just looked out where the gulls whirled in the current, hunting herring. It was wild and eerie and.....well...I can't come up with a better word than different.


For more on problems with flood debris, go here.

Mom is a Carver Too

She carved this little Santa and even won a blue ribbon with him. He was among my very favorite Christmas gifts this season.